Riceberry Raw Summer Rolls with Ginger Peanut Sauce

There are so many good things about these raw vegan summer rolls, I just don’t know where to begin! Riceberry is a whole grain rice with a black-purplish color and it can be found in Thailand, where it’s used in desserts at major feasts. In the US, riceberry is known as Forbidden Rice, a much sexier name in my opinion. It is high in fiber and antioxidants and has a nutty flavor.

I found these riceberry rice papers at an international market here so I had to try them out, even though I’ve never successfully rolled a summer roll in rice paper. It’s a little tricky but my rolling got better with practice. Notice the beautiful mauve color of the rice paper. But ordinary white rice paper will work just fine too.

Here’s what the rice papers look like. I found these in Thailand; I assume they’re exported because of the USA sticker on the package. They’re really cool looking and taste good, plus riceberry is less refined than white rice so they’re healthier than normal rice papers.

I watched a few YouTube videos on how to roll summer rolls but the most important point I found was dipping the papers into warm water just long enough that they soften but not too much. They continue to absorb the water even after you lay the wet paper down on your surface. If they soak in the water too long they become gooey and stick to everything, and they tear easily.

I soaked this for 20-30 seconds then laid it flat on my work surface. Sorry the colors are similar!

Once your wet rice paper is on a work surface, lay the contents of the roll on the lower third of the rice paper, keeping a decent border on either side that can be folded in, burrito style. It’s good to put the lettuce piece down first so it will hold the other contents and keep them from poking thru or tearing the rice paper.

It could have been rolled tighter… but anyway I’m new at this!

Not bad for my first attempt!

I like to think of this dish as a salad you can hold in your hand and dip into the sauce. And who doesn’t love hand-held food?

I made some Vietnamese-style quick pickles from daikon & carrot and that really made the flavor much more authentic.

I wanted to share this dish with a friend who doesn’t eat garlic or onions so my challenge was to use flavor profiles without either.

For the protein, I marinated slices of a firm tofu for 24 hours in a galangal-kaffir lime marinade. I also made an easy dipping sauce from peanut butter and shredded fresh ginger. I sliced some raw veggies and threw in some fermented red cabbage kraut and sprouted mung beans I had hanging out in the fridge.

After assembling the summer rolls, the best part was eating them. Dipped in that peanut sauce they were super tasty, light and refreshing and just perfect for this tropical weather. They can be an appetizer or a main dish; the tofu and the peanut sauce bring protein to the dish. They’re also low cal and anti-inflammatory. People who generally don’t want to eat salad or a lot of vegetables all seem to love these summer rolls too.

They supposedly can be kept in the refrigerator up to 3 days… but mine got all eaten on day one. If you do plan to store them, be aware that the rice paper wrapper is very sticky and the rolls with stick together if you put them in a container with nothing separating them. For this reason I recommend wrapping each one with plastic wrap, then putting in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

The recipe has a lot of steps but they’re all quick and easy, I promise. The pickles go well with other dishes. They can really brighten up a meat sandwich, like Bahn Mi. And the peanut sauce can be used as a salad dressing.

I will definitely make this dish again… very soon!

RECIPE

One day prior, marinate the tofu and make the pickles.

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Kaffir Lime-Marinated Tofu

• 1 block firm tofu cut in 1/4” slices

• 1/4 cup + 2 tbsp good quality soy sauce

• 1” ginger knob peeled and chopped (I used galangal, which is a Thai lesser ginger, and I squeezed the juice out of it but any ginger will work well)

• 5 double leaves of kaffir lime if available, cut in chiffonade. An alternative would be to use the zest of one organic lime

• optional - a few drops of stevia

Keeping the tofu aside, mix the remaining ingredients in a bowl or sealable container until well integrated. Place tofu slices in the bowl or container one at a time, layering them so the marinade can get between the slices. I like to choose a container that’s not much bigger than the tofu so the marinade can cover. You may need to add more soy sauce or water to cover.

Keep this in the refrigerator for 24 hours for the marinade to work it’s magic. From time to time slosh the marinade around to make sure it’s coating all the tofu.

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Vietnamese pickles:

• 1/2 lb daikon, peeled and cut in matchsticks

• 1/2 lb carrots, peeled and cut in matchsticks

• stevia to taste

• 1/2 tsp salt

• 1/2 cup + 1 tbsp rice vinegar

• 1/2 cup warm water (preferably distilled)

Put daikon & carrots in a bowl and sprinkle with salt. Massage for about three minutes, until veggies are pliable. Rinse in a colander and transfer to a mixing bowl.

Mix vinegar and water with stevia (if using a concentrated stevia start with just 3 drops and taste until you find the right balance of sweet to acid.) That is your pickling liquid.

Pour it over the veggies and mix. Place in a sterilized mason jar. They are ready to use right away but better the next day. They can be kept in the refrigerator 4-6 weeks.

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Ginger Peanut Sauce

• 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter

• 1 tbsp soy sauce

• 1/4 tsp minced ginger

• 1 tsp Thai or Indonesian chili garlic sauce

• 2 tbsp or more warm water

• 1/4 tsp rice vinegar

• juice of 1 lime

• a few drops of stevia, to taste

Combine all ingredients in a bowl. For thinner dip add more water. Easy peasy!

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Summer Rolls

• 8 Rice paper wrappers (can be found at many asian markets and natural foods markets or ordered online. Note they come in many different sizes.)

• Curly lettuce or butter lettuce (romaine will be too stiff)

• 1/2 cup fresh mint and or basil leaves

• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro

• 1/2 cup bean sprouts (I used homemade mung bean sprouts)

• 2/3 cup English or Persian cucumber cut into batons

• optional 1/2 cup other veggies you may have on hand, cut into batons. I used red bell pepper

• optional - fermented veggies such as sauerkraut

See the photos above on how to use the rice papers and roll the summer rolls.

Fill a pie plate with warm water. Working with 1 rice paper round at a time, soak rice paper in water, turning occasionally, until just pliable but not limp, about 30 seconds. Transfer to a work surface. Place one torn lettuce leaf down on bottom third, then assemble other ingredients on top of it. Fold up the bottom over filling then fold in the sides, then roll like a burrito into a tight cylinder. Take care not to tear the rice paper. Transfer the roll to a serving tray, seam side down. Cover with a damp towel and roll the next roll. You will improve your rolling skills with each one.

To serve, slice rolls in the center on the diagonal, if the roll is rolled tightly enough. Alas, mine were not. But it didn’t matter, they got devoured immediately!